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2018 – the year of anniversaries. 90th for Mickey Mouse… 65th for Peter Pan (the animated feature)… 50th for the Haunted Mansion attraction… 25th for The Nightmare Before Christmas… 10th for WALL·E and Bolt… I could go on. I already have a certain anniversary celebration in mind, and it’s not for Frozen.

With Adobe Illustrator on my 7-year-old Dell Studio 15 computer running Windows 10 by Microsoft, I have made something more intricate than anything I’ve ever made in my graphic design class or in my spare time. I’ve been working on it on and off since late June, and now, after four painstaking months, it’s finally ready!

This may be my most ambitious fan art since the one I did for MC Skat Kat and the Stray Mob. You can tell how much I care about the show just by looking at everything that was crammed into this piece. I’ve worked on it for a good number of reasons.

Wander Over Yonder is the funniest, cleverest, liveliest, and most well thought-out cartoons I’ve ever watched.

It was clearly left on a cliffhanger (see end tag of the S2 finale, The End of the Galaxy).

Creator Craig McCracken pitched his ideas for a third season back in early 2015.

Disney made a big mistake by canceling WOY a week before S2 started in August of 2015 and had a chance to prove itself.

There were brief glimpses of The Star Nomad and the space chimp in The Waste of Time, the former appearing up close in a brief cameo in Future-Worm’s S1 finale.

WOY is still overshadowed by some other DTVA shows, mainly Gravity Falls and Star vs. the Forces of Evil, which, by the way, have been shoved down America’s throat for way too long (much like Phineas and Ferb). Don’t get me wrong, P&F, GF, and SvtFoE are great, but c’mon, just because they got higher ratings doesn’t mean they’re the best of the best.

Paul Rudish’s Mickey Mouse shorts series is still running (slated for 5 seasons so far).

There’s a slight possibility of current DTVA shows getting more than two seasons, including but not limited to: Milo Murphy’s Law, the Big Hero 6 series, and Big City Greens – 2017 DuckTales is already slated for 3 so far.

Upcoming DTVA shows created by people who were involved in GF (Amphibia, The Owl House) might bring attention away from saving WOY.

After more than two years, Craig still hasn’t told the public EVERYTHING about S3 (and neither have the other WOY crew members), even with a lot of people thinking WOY cannot be saved. That’s because they love it too much to blow it all in one post. Also, certain long-canceled shows like Hey Arnold! and Samurai Jack got the chance for well-deserved closure. Not to mention Young Justice getting a third season on DC’s streaming service.

We’ve gone more than two whole years without knowing the following:
⦁ How Lord Hater and his army of Watchdogs came to be
⦁ What will tempt Commander Peepers to the dark(er) side
⦁ Where Dominator will wind up
⦁ How Sylvia warmed up to Wander before the events of S1
⦁ How Wander would be tested
⦁ What’s worse than galactic destruction
⦁ How WOY is supposed to end

We’re in a universe where Phineas and Ferb, Gravity Falls, the Mickey Mouse shorts, Star vs. the Forces of Evil, and the 2017 DuckTales are among the cartoons perpetually revered by the Disney executives. Frankly, it stinks, because the public still hasn’t seen those plans for Wander Over Yonder’s third season become a reality. The executives are more interested in keeping Gravity Falls alive even though Alex Hirsch already ended it his way, which is why I threw in some “fan service” on the bottom right corner. I can only hope that this fully loaded fan art (with a couple of hints to S3) will persuade viewers (old and new) to dispense with all this talk of “Wander is dead,” compel non-fans to help out, and convince Disney once and for all that WOY deserves one more season (number of episodes may vary) or a TV movie to give it that much needed closure many existing fans have been yearning for so long.

Those of you who are far more interested in the aforementioned Disney shows (plus Cartoon Network shows like Adventure Time, The Amazing World of Gumball, OK K.O.!: Let’s Be Heroes, Steven Universe, Teen Titans Go!, and We Bare Bears, to name a few), it wouldn’t hurt you to swallow your pride and help out a fandom of an incomplete show. If your favorite show wasn’t getting the chance for definite closure, I’d surely help out any way I can because I believe in cartoon equality. Every show has a distinctive goal. The goal for Wander Over Yonder is to have Lord Hater accept Wander’s friendship; cancellation prevented it from happening. Do yourselves a favor and help us WOY fans change the Disney bosses’ minds.

Disney bosses, we fully support your acceptance of new ideas, but let’s be reasonable. If there were people (children included) who didn’t have long to live, happened to be Wander fans, and were highly curious about the downed space pod in the S2 finale’s end tag, what would you do? Two seasons can’t be enough. You didn’t have that mindset when you let Fish Hooks go on for three seasons. Heck, you even let Disney Junior shows go on for more than two seasons without hesitation (Mickey and the Roadster Racers, The Lion Guard, Puppy Dog Pals, Vampirina, to name a few). So now I ask you, what’s more important, focusing on the immortality of shows that already got wrapped up the creators’ way or resolving the cliffhangers of beloved shows created by experienced cartoonists who want to make the world a better place?

To some, Wander Over Yonder is just a cartoon show, but it’s a source of enjoyment and inspiration to me and other people. My fan art wouldn’t exist if I wasn’t interested in a third season, and you know something? It won’t be complete unless we know exactly what the three new main characters and two new regulars planned for S3 look like, hence the question marks. In case you haven’t guessed, Francisco Angones, a WOY crew member now working on DuckTales, brought up the number of new characters. If the Disney bosses don’t plan on giving it proper closure while humanity still exists, I’m hoping this fan art will at least grant me (and every fan) permission to see the presentation of that third season pitch. I don’t know how Craig’s doing with his fourth show, but he still has some unfinished business with Wander Over Yonder, and I’m not counting it as one of the shows that ended until I get to see Lord Hater’s backstory and what challenge awaits Wander. I’ve been longing to make a big contribution to the SaveWOY movement, and I think I’ve succeeded.

I’ve just realized something. I turned 30 this year. My deceased mother would have turned 53 on the 20th. Could this be a coincidence? Could this be my destiny? Could I be the key to saving Wander Over Yonder? Only time will tell.

I meant to upload this image one month ago, but things have been awfully busy for me as of late. Today is what would have been my deceased mother’s 53rd birthday, and I feel the time is right to show my latest Blockopolis-related doodle…

It’s pretty interesting how I have the right number of characters for such an occasion. You know what else is interesting? The biggest fan art I’ve ever created, which should explain my apparent hiatus. I’ll be showing it in the next post, and let’s just say the world will come to realize a certain cartoon show still has some unfinished business.

Happy birthday, Mom. I think of you all the time and I still love you with no limits.

Sorry to keep you waiting! In my absence, I’ve whipped up some new Illustrator material.

If you’re familiar with the Star Wars franchise, chances are you’ve seen the classic trilogy set on VHS mastered by THX: https://goo.gl/images/y4WCuf

I took some inspiration from the format and came up an idea of how my favorite cartoon, Wander Over Yonder, would look if it was released on DVD/Blu-ray Disc in separate seasons.

First up is Season 1.

As you can see, Lord Hater is the main antagonist, but he is relatable in many ways. With Wander and Sylvia around, his efforts to conquer the galaxy in which the show takes place are often, how you say, stymied. Also take note of some of the planets I made on my own – habitable, colorful, and suited for exploration. Loaded with 39 episodes (36 quarter-hours and 3 half-hours), the first season is about building a unique universe and understanding what makes certain characters tick. This set would also come with 11 1-minute shorts taking place between seasons 1 and 2, in which Hater broadcasts his attempt to destroy Wander, whose friendliness makes things more complicated.

Next is Season 2.

Taken in a much more serialized direction (4-part format, 3 different status quos), this season introduces a character more powerful (and more villainous) than Lord Hater: Lord Dominator (as foreshadowed in the end tag of S1’s last half-hour episode). Set in a much more organized order (40 episodes: half hour, 12 quarter hour, half hour, 12 quarter hour, half hour, 12 quarter hour, half hour), this season is about testing Hater. With his status as a villain in jeopardy and his jealousy of Dominator cranked up, Hater does whatever he can to get back on top of the villain leaderboard. Once he eventually learns of Dominator’s true gender (thanks to Wander’s efforts to bring the two together), he instantly falls in love. Unlike Hater, of course, Dominator only wants to destroy the galaxy (as the punctured planets you see on the cover indicate), and she rebuffs Hater’s affections for her. At the end, there’s a showdown that’s particularly climactic for this season, but not much else is resolved, as there were plans for…

(drumroll)

Season 3. NOTE: It currently has not been made.

As the end tag in S2’s final episode implies, the whole story of Wander Over Yonder was left incomplete. The planets are restored (if you saw the last two episodes of S2, you would know why), and they make up a whole new galaxy for everyone to explore. A brand new orbble-powered ship (The Star Nomad) is built for Wander and Sylvia so they can carry any remaining refugees back to their home planets. There would also be a threat much worse than Dominator, but since we don’t know what he/she/it looks like, I left a big ol’ question mark in the spot. It was said that this season would be about testing Wander, which I guess would focus on his ability to maintain his belief in everything he stands for. Not only that, we would’ve found out how Lord Hater came became a skeletal being with electric powers and how he ended up with Peepers and the Watchdogs. Guaranteed to be the best season ever, this would have tied up all loose ends and those who worked on the show are still keeping the details under their proverbial hats, which is why SaveWOY continues. As of now, creator Craig McCracken is working on a new project for Disney, which hopefully will be successful enough to persuade the executives to give Wander Over Yonder proper closure, be it a 13-half-hour season or a TV movie.

I apologize for the ridiculously long wait. My chance to post was delayed due to job searching, working, and looking for ways to spark interest in saving my favorite cartoon show (one way being this model I made on LEGO Digital Designer).

With a new year in full swing, I suppose it’s time for me to share my recent Illustrator material from late 2017. I have a 5’10” man thrown in each image for scale.

A few months ago, I canceled my subscription to use Illustrator in order to save money. Once I get a better paying job, I might get back on track to making more. We’ll see.

In the past few years, I’ve taken note of various intellectual properties and products getting an enhanced treatment. A remake of the first three Crash Bandicoot games recently came out in a single pack for the PS4 (which I don’t own at this time), and boy, does everything look amazing! I had already downloaded the first game (in original PlayStation form) for the PS3, so I was able to notice better improvements in the remake.

The point I’m trying to emphasize is that anything that looks pretty obsolete can still be enhanced. Remember this comic from a couple of years ago?

Before:

I’ve made a version of it on Illustrator.

After:

Some of the poses look even more Jackeny than before. Sometimes I impress myself with my skills.

I know Earth Day is tomorrow, but I’d like to show something I made with Illustrator that portrays Yonda Globe in a brand new light. Of course, those of you who checked out that one comic page I made back in August of 2015 will recognize her bathing suit. There’s more to it, though – I brought up three new characters: Uppen Awaye (the hang glider), Marnie Marine (the pool float), and Quake Barrowheel (the wheelbarrow). You’ll also notice I’ve given Yonda the phrase “And now the world gets it” a second time – the first time was in the supermoon comic page back in November of 2016. Walter Cronkite’s phrase “And that’s the way it is” is pretty much inspiration for the phrase, and with Yonda’s interest in reporting and care for the planet, anything interesting is bound to happen. You might say she has the potential to be an Earth Day mascot.